L pelatan



Patented Apr. 25-, [899.

L. PELATAN. APPARATUS FOR TREATING OBES OR THE LIKE.

(Application filed June 13, 1898.)

2 Shaets-$heet I.

(No Model.)

FIGJ.

THE "cams versus co Pmmnl woq WASHXN No. 623,822. Patented Apr. 25, I899.

L. PELATAN. APPARATUS FOR TREATING ORES OR THE LIKE.

(Application filed June 13, 1898.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

w: No

RRIS versus c0, momu'mo" WASHINGTON n LOUIS PELATAN, OF PARIS, FRANCE, ASSIGNOR TO THE GENERAL GOLD EXTRAOTING COMPANY, LIMITED, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

APPARATUS FOR TREATING ORES OR THE LIKE.

- SPECIFICATION forming art of Letters Patent No. 623,822, dated April 25, 1899.

Original application filed October 21, 189 '7. Serial No. 655,889. Divided and this application fil'ed June 13, 1898. Serial No. 683,343. (No model.)

To to whom it may concern:

Be it known that .1, Louis PELATAN, a director of the General Gold Extracting Company, Limited, a citizen of the Republicof France, and a resident of 17 Boulevard de la Madeline, Paris, France, have invented certain new and useful Apparatus for Treating Ores or the Like, (for which patents have been applied for in England, No. 22,256, September 28, 1897; in Spain November 12, 1897; in Russia October 29, 1897, R. S.; in Brazil February 23, 1898; in Hungary November 9, 1897; in France January 31, 1898; in Canada, November 18, 1897; in New South Wales December 9, 1897; in Victoria December 8, 1897;

p in South Australia December 9, 1897; in

Queensland December 11, 1897; in I/Vestern AustraliaDece-mber 20, 1897 in New Zealand December 17, 1897; in Tasmania December 11, 1897, and in India, Natal, and Transv aal,) of which the following is a specification.

The object of this invention is to provide apparatus for use in the treatment of ores, sludges, pulps, or solutions, including clear solutions or the like, containing gold or silver or both gold and silver, so as to obtain the precious metal therefrom in a more complete and satisfactory manner than hitherto and with considerable economy of the agents employed in the treatment, and the said apparatus is more especially intended for use in the process described in my specification of my application for Patent, Serial No. 655,889, filed October 21,1897, of which the present application is a division. 7

I will describe the apparatus with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 is a vertical section, and Fig. 2 is a plan, with the cover of the vat removed, of an arrangement of apparatus according to this invention. Figs. 3 and 4: are views similar to Figs. 1 and 2, respectively, of another form of apparatus specially adapted to large vats.

.I mount the revolving anode in the vat A by suspending the said anode from above, preferably by securing it to the lower extremity of a shaft B, supported in bearings b above the anode and strengthened, if neces-' suitable inaterialsuch, for example, as carbon or iron or steel. The under surfaces of the said anode are throughout their whole extent parallel with the surface of the cathode D, which consists of mercury supported in anysuitable waysuch, for instance, as being upon copper plates or upon iron or cement bottom. The shaft B is in metallic contact with the anode, and the connection from the positive pole of a dynamo-electrical machine or other electric generator employed is connected to a contact-piece c, which bears against the said shaft, with which the anodeplates are in electric contact, while the negative pole of the said dynamo-n1achine or generator is connected to the cathode D.

The shaft B is mounted in its bearings in such a way that it can be readily raised and lowered when required in order either to facilitate the recovery of the amalgam from the mercury cathode by removing the anode in case of making the clean-up or to regulate whenever necessary the distance of the anode from the cathode, and consequently the electrical resistance, according to the nature of the materials to be treated, which is an imby the top wheel whatever be, within certain limits, the distance between anode and cathode.

In order to sweep the sludge from the catho'de and prevent it from aecum ulating or settling thereupon, I provide the arms of the re volving anode with pins or projections K K, made of wood or other material which is a non-conductor of electricity or covered with non-conductive material, the said pins or projections projecting downward to within a short distance from the eat-hodesay to within half an inch or one inch at the most-but not so near as to disturb or touch the mercury, which otherwise would be broken up or floured to such an extent as to interfere seriously with the proper working of the process. The said pins or projections may also extend to a short distance above the arms of the anode, so as to act upon the sludge which is above the anode. V

In order to prevent the objectionable effects of the centrifugal action, I provide the inner side of the vat with inward projections or balllcs h, extending close to and above the path described by the extremities of the arms of the said anode, so as to break up the moving mass of sludge and prevent it acquiring a continuous revolving movement in the space above the anode. These projections or baffles may be placed vertically, as shown, or at any other suitable angle.

The agitating-arms may be of any suitable length and shape.

The requisite degree of agitation can. be obtained by regulating the speed at which the anode is driven; but if the rate of speed which it would be necessary to have with a certain number of arms would be such as to disturb or break up the mercury of the cat11- odc I prefer to elfect the required agitation without undue increase of speed by providing the anode with a sufficiently-incrcased number of arms.

I have found that for the same vat the number of revolutions of the anode which is necessary to effect a given agitation in the sludge is inversely proportional to the square roots of the numbers of the arms in the said anode. If, for instance, the original number of arms be four, then if this number be supplemented by four additional arms of equal length a similar degree of agitation can be maintained practicallyin the sludge by giving the anode with eightarms a number of revolutions about thirty per cent. lower than would be required to give the required degree of agitation if only the original four arms were used. This use of a sufiicient number of arms to give the requisite degree of agitation without undue speed is of great importance with large vats, as in such vats if only a small number of arms were used the speed of the revolving anode would have to be increased in proportion to the diameter in order to give the requisite degree of agitation to maintain the pulverized ore in the properstate of suspension to prevent the settling of particles thereof on the cathode. The maximum speed which can be used for stirring the sludge in such large vats without disturbing the mercury of the cathode varies both with the construction of the vat and the nature of the ore or the like treated but generally I have found that it is dangerous to run the anode at a greater speed than about ten feet per second at the extremity of the arms. I find, therefore, that if the sludge cannot be conveniently agitated with less speed of the anode than about ten feet per second at the ends of the arms of the anode it is advantageous to use such a greater number of arms as will give the requisite agitation by driving the anode at the requisite lowness of speed. which will generally be sufficient for a vat of the character shown.

Alternate arms may be shorter than the others or the same length, and the pins with which they are provided may be at distances apart the same as or diiferent from those on the longer arms, and all or any number of the arms may be arranged to act electrically as the anode. The same or a similar result can be obtained in the case of large vats, especially by constructing them as shown in vertical section in Fig. 3 and plan in Fig. 4, so that the sludge is contained in an annular space between two concentric cylinders or walls A A, one inside the other, and of course extending to above the level of the charge in the vat. The space inside the inner wall A being empty will allow of the shaft B passing through it.

The revolving anode consists of arms C and anode-plates c and depending pins or projections K, as in the preceding case, the arms being supported by a ring 0 which is connected to the shaft by the arms b and collar, as shown, and the said shaft is arranged, as described with regard to Figs. 1 and 2, so that it can be readily lowered and raised in order to vary the distance. and consequently the electrical resistance, between the anode and cathode. In this case also the space between the anode and cathode and also the space above the anode, in which the sludge is contained, are free from any such fixed obstacle as would interfere with the thorough and effective agitation of the sludge by the revolving anode. The battles or projections 7t, however, project from the interior of the outer wall of the vat for the purpose described with regard to the first arrangement. which correspond with those shown in Figs. 1 and 2 are marked with like reference-letters.

In each arrangement the pipei is for drawing off the mercury of the cathode, andj is a pipe for emptying the vat of its contents. Both pipes may be fitted with either plugs or stop-cocks or valves.

\Vhile the apparatus herein described may The drawings show eight arms, Y

The parts too be used for carrying out various processes for treating ores for the recovery of gold and silver therefrom, it has been designedpartictn larly for use in practicing the process set forth in my application for patent hereinbefore referred to. WVithout here describingsaid process in detail I may say generally that the pulverized ore, water, and cyanid solution in proper proportions (constituting the sludge) are introduced into the vat and the anode rotated at the desired speed, the electric current acting on the sludge through the space between the anode and cathode. In this manner and by reason of the improved construction of the apparatus every particle of the ore is subjected to the action of the cyanid solution and the electric current and the gold or silver contained therein first dissolved by the cyanid solution and finally amalgamated by the mercury constituting, the cathode. Thegold or silver is finally separated from the mercury in a well-known manner.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this invention and the manner in which it is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is 1. In apparatus of the kind described, the combination with a vat, of a mercury cathode at the bottom thereof, an anode suspended in the vat entirely from above whereby an unobstructed space is provided between the surfaces of the anode and cathode, said anode consisting of an arm extending close to the sides of the vat, and pins or stirrers projectin g from said arms upwardly and downwardly to within a short distance of, but none of a rotatable annular cathode above and parallel to the cathode, the said anode consisting of arms extending close to the inner and outer internal walls of the-annular vat and provided with pins or stirrers projecting from said arms upwardly and downwardly to within a short distance of, but none of them touching, the cathode.

b. In apparatus of the kind described, the combination with a circular vat, of a revolving anode situated above and parallel to a mercury cathode, with an unobstructed space above the surface of the cathode, the said anode having arms which extend close to the peripheral Wall of the vat and are suspended from a shaft, and are provided with pins or stirrers projecting upward and downward to within a short distance of the u nderlying oath ode, and projections or baffies extending inwardly from the inner surface of the peripheral wall of the vat, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LOUIS PELATAN.

Witnesses VICTOR BARBOS, EDWARD P. MAoLEAN. 

